


Shattered Fragments

by AquaJasmine23



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-14
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-04 14:33:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1782448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AquaJasmine23/pseuds/AquaJasmine23
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Rumbelle aftermath of 2x01 "Broken". What happens when Emma, Henry, Snow& Charming, and Ruby need to know what's in the future for Storybrooke and its fairytale residents? They may end up wishing they'd waited, or at least stayed in the main room of Gold's shop and, you know, not opened the curtain. Emma requires some bleach.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Glass Breaks

**Author's Note:**

> Rumbelle fic, set just after the curse is broken, except for Emma and Snow didn't go through the portal, and Regina clearly didn't die via the Wraith.

"But now you must go." It broke his heart to say it. But her safety was so much more important.

He loved her. 

"What?" Belle's small voice was incredulous. "I just came back!" she protested, and his heart and mind lurched simultaneously, but he had to protect her. She was everything to him.

Belle meant more to him than power, but he needed power to find Bae, and as long as he had his dark magic, Belle was not safe.

Rumplestiltskin's voice shook a bit as he spoke, and he was sure she knew it. "No...eventually you'd leave me because you can see what I really am. You think you see a good man, but in time?… you'd see the monster." It killed him to say it, but she had been put at risk too many times because of him. He couldn't allow it to happen again, no matter how much it hurt. Especially when he saw the crushed look on her paling face, and the freezing sadness in her aquamarine eyes.

Then the smile was back. "Don't you see? That's exactly why I have to stay!" she proclaimed, clutching his hands.

For ages he just stared at her, trying to comprehend how she could think that he was capable of change. Three centuries as the Dark One had proved that his curse was irreversible. "Belle..." he trailed off hopelessly.

"I'm staying with you," Belle interrupted, and he wanted to die because she was, of course, too good to leave him, and he was not strong enough to force her away again. "I love you."

"Belle… you know I love you. But you can't… " He nearly threw his hands in the air in frustration. "Belle… the deal we made. It's null and void. You're free. You can leave whenever, go wherever. You can have anything. See the world, like you wanted."

She wrapped her slender arms around him and tucked her head under his chin, and he breathed in her scent eagerly, and he felt like howling and laughing at the same time. This was not what he wanted for her, but he was too selfish to choose her safety over her love again. "I'm not leaving you again," she vowed, kissing him chastely.

He smiled at her and his eyes closed.

"Are you disappointed? That the wraith didn't kill the Queen, I mean," Belle clarified in her soft little voice, after about ten minutes of just sitting there by his wheel, together at last, savouring the moments. Rumplestiltskin was watching her, slightly awestruck in his discreet way. Her eyes glimmered, he noticed, the bright cerulean colour he'd missed for so long.

He tried to answer honestly. "I don't give a damn about Regina, Belle. I only care about your happiness." Right now, that was the truth.

She smiled brilliantly at him, and he acknowledged the unfamiliar and surprising feeling of being happy. Nothing was wrong, except the loss of his son. He needed to make amends, to prove that he was not his own father.

Belle whispered a shuddering thank-you and clutched him against her. His hands came up and buried themselves into her soft auburn curls, relishing the feeling.

"Back in the Dark Castle," he said, trying to steady his tone, "you found clothing that belonged to my son. I promised you I would tell you his story."

Recognition flared in her eyes. "Will you tell me now?" she asked quietly.

Rumplestiltskin nodded, his arms wrapping almost unconsciously around her waist and pulling her closer. "Yes. His- his name is Baelfire. When I became the Dark One, he began to hate the power that I was obsessed with. Eventually, Reul Ghorm offered him a bean, a portal to this land without magic. He wanted me to come with him, but... I was afraid. I was a coward, and I lost him."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. He remembered another conversation they'd had in the Dark Castle, when he had exposed himself.  _"We had a chance to be happy... together. But I was afraid. I let him go. He's not dead! He's just... lost."_

"I spent three hundred years trying to get him back," he admitted. "That's why I created the Dark Curse, Belle, that's why I let you go. I was terrified of losing my magic... because I knew that if I did, he'd be lost to me forever."

She pulled back slightly to examine his face in that way that only she could, a mixture of happiness and fright and worry. And exasperation. "I don't want you to leave without me. Not again."

His face twisted, regret striking him like a whip. "Belle-"

"No, it isn't your fault," she interjected. "I was mad at you at first, but then I thought about it and realized there had to be a reason. I knew you loved me, Rumpel, I never stopped believing it. And don't you dare talk like you're going to find your son without me. I will come with you, and you won't be able to talk me out of it."

She was so stubborn. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him. "I love you, Belle," he murmured. It seemed like the natural response.

Her love still baffled him, but he saw now that denying it more would be insulting her. He believed that she loved him; he just didn't understand  _why_.

She seemed to understand, grabbing him by the tie and hauling him toward her, their lips crashing together. It felt like there was a fire rising inside him, burning brighter and brighter until the blaze was too hot to manage.

"Not as innocent as the image projects, are you?" he said sarcastically, unable to keep the grin off his face.

"I love you too," she said, as an answer to his proclamation from moments ago. "I've always loved you."

And she was already in the circle of his arms and then they were kissing and she was tripping and falling onto his lap and he forgot everything but the woman in his arms.

* * *

 

It was with great reluctance when Emma Swan pushed open the door to Mr. Gold's pawnshop, her son, her parents, and Ruby on her heels like they were storming a castle. Her parents actually had, according to Henry. Emma didn't wanted to talk to Gold anymore; all she wanted to do was punch him in the face. He had almost caused Henry to die, which was completely unforgivable. But apparently he could see the future, and her parents wanted to know how the town (and Regina) would react to the breaking of the curse.

The sign had been turned to Closed, but Emma didn't think much of it. It wasn't like there was much for him to do.

She hated owing Regina. The queen had saved her and Mary Margaret, somehow regaining her magic and sending vines to twine around Emma and her mother and pull them away from the portal. Henry had been so grateful, which was likely her goal the whole time.

But, unfortunately, Jefferson's hat had collapsed in on itself, falling through into what could be any realm, and there was no way to recover it. That wouldn't have mattered so much if Rumpelstiltskin and Regina hadn't made enemies in all seven realms accessible from the Enchanted Forest.

Shocker.

Emma heard a strangled groan come from the back room, concealed by the curtain. She raised her eyebrows; no one else had seemed to hear it. Maybe she was imagining things. Hallucinating wouldn't have come as much of a shock; it was logical compared to the rest of the bullshit nonsense that had been flying around lately.

* * *

Of course he didn't hear the bell. Any noise other than Belle's little moans and whimpers was blocked out from his hearing. Her hands had slid inside his suit jacket and crushed him against her tiny form, and they were still kissing, and unless Baelfire came charging into the shop shouting forgiveness Rumpelstiltskin didn't give a damn about anything that wasn't Belle. Her lips were paradise, her eyes the sea and sky and world beyond, and he would never send her away again.

* * *

 

"Aren't you going in?" Henry asked when she stopped. Ruby looked dubious now that the noise level coming from the back was increasing. Gold couldn't possibly be... 

… But then again…

"I don't know," she replied honestly. Curiosity lit up Henry's face. Mary Margaret and David seemed to finally catch on, and their faces twisted in disgust at the same time, which Emma found laughable.

"Come on, guys, let's just go back to Granny's or something," suggested Ruby.

"No," David said instantly. "We have to find out what the hell is gonna happen, and I really don't think Regina's in the mood to lend a hand."

"I don't-" Emma started hesitantly, not expecting Ruby to shove her past the curtain. She stumbled in blindly, barely avoiding falling on her face, steadied by her son, who had walked in right behind her. So had Ruby, David, and Mary Margaret. So really, they all saw Gold at the same time.

He was sitting at a spinning wheel that resembled the one in Henry's book, a woman on his lap and wrapped in his arms. She was small, with long auburn hair and pale skin, and she was making out with the pawnbroker like she'd die if she couldn't. Emma gagged, feeling as though her breakfast might make a reappearance. _Number one on the list of things I never ever want to see again: Gold making out._ Was she the only one who thought this was gross? He looked around twenty years older than her, and that was just  _ew_ all by itself.

Apparently not. Henry was gaping, his eyes wide. Ruby seemed frozen in place, staring like she didn't know what else to do. And Mary Margaret had thrown her hands over her eyes. David just looked disgusted.

And still, Gold didn't break away from the woman. She was beautiful, certainly, and she could see how he would be attracted to her in that nearly sheer blue and white flowered lace dress... but still. Why in the hell was she with him? Who was she? Why didn't anyone recognize her?

"Oh gods," Snow said, properly embarrassed like she'd probably been brought up to be.

Finally seeming to notice them, Gold let go of the woman. She muttered an indignant complaint- something about "twenty-eight years spent arranging their futures and we can't have fifteen minutes of peace", Emma believed- but sat back slightly, the spinning wheel still rotating.

"Miss Swan," Gold said politely, even though he was breathing heavily and his eyes looked slightly dilated and- forget it. That thought could rot in the back of her mind for all eternity, but she never wanted to think about it again. Ever. "What-" he paused. "What need do you have of my services?"

"That's what he said," Ruby quipped behind her. Henry looked puzzled, and David put his head in his hands exasperatedly.

Emma whirled and glared, and then she turned back to Gold. "What's in the future?"

"Pardon?"

"The future. What's in store for the town? I thought if the curse was broken everyone was supposed to go back to the Enchanted Forest. Why didn't they?" He was starting to wear on her already ragged patience.

"I notice your use of the word 'they'," he said, more to her parents than Emma herself. "You don't intend to go back with the Enchanted Forest inhabitants."

"I- uh- that's not what I asked," Emma covered, a guilty look on her face.

"Why don't you want to go with your family?" the woman asked. Gold turned his head, an affectionate expression appearing when he looked at her. Her voice was soft, melodic, her eyes kind.

"Uh-" Emma stopped. "Who're you?" She knew she sounded rude, but the woman had Frenched the Dark One. There were necessary questions, but really, Emma wanted it to be on a need- to- know basis. Really.

The brunette, still sitting on Gold's lap, extended a pale hand towards her. "Belle," she said as Emma gingerly shook it. 

Emma groaned mentally. "Don't tell me. You're Belle from  _Beauty and the Beast_ and Gold's the Beast. I should've guessed that before."

Belle looked confused. Emma observed Gold's eyes following hers, softening when he looked at Belle. Did he _love_ her? This place was becoming more and more dysfunctional by the second.

"What's _Beauty and the Beast_?" she asked curiously, turning back to Gold. "Is that a book?"

"Sort of…?" she answered slowly; at this point she was eager to run out and slam the door behind her and let Gold get on with - whatever he was doing.

"I'll explain later, love," Gold promised. Belle's eyes seemed to widen at the endearment, and she wrapped an arm around his waist. He glanced at Emma and nodded briefly, and she couldn't resist the urge to grimace. She supposed it was only reasonable.

Mary Margaret- she couldn't really think of her as Snow White, not yet- cleared her throat. "Well, we should go. Um, to deal with Regina." She sounded nervous, tense like she'd been around David during the curse.

"Yes, let's," Emma said, before Belle could recall the fact that technically, Emma had never answered her question. She placed both hands on Henry's shoulders- honestly, it was a miracle that the kid had stayed silent all of that, but she supposed he had already known about Gold and Belle thanks to the damned book- and led him out, Snow and Charming and finally Red appearing behind them.

Belle ducked her auburn head out after them. "Emma, can I talk to you later?" she half- shouted after them. Even with a raised voice, her tone was soft and serene.

Emma raised her eyebrows. There was _one_ princess who still retained a non- screwed up personality, she thought. "Alright," she yelled back in response- loudly, because they were already headed to the Mayor's. She had never thought she'd say this in reference to Regina's house, but she was grateful to be going there. Mostly because it was away from Gold. The look in his eyes when he gazed at Belle discomforted her greatly. She didn't know why, but it gave her a strange sense of deja-vu.

Finally, the Charmings were gone. Rumplestiltskin lifted a lock of silky auburn hair away from Belle's eyes and kissed her again. She gasped against his mouth, opening willingly under the sweet pressure, and they were whole. Their love might have blown apart and broken their hearts into shattered fragments back in the Dark Castle, but now they were together. They could face the wreckage  _together_. _  
_


	2. Lesser of Two Evils

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I SUCK. I haven't updated this in- let me think- over a month! Oh, the horror that is end- of- year concerts, exams, and ETC! I'm so sorry! Luckily school is (finally) out, so I'm hoping to have this story wrapped up within a week *crosses fingers*. Thanks!

It wasn't the birds and bees, Emma thought with some trepidation, but knowing Gold, it would be worse.

Emma exhaled heavily as she collapsed into her bed. Henry was safe… Regina wasn't planning mass destruction among the populace (which, for her, was something of a major accomplishment) … her parents had granted her a break from their perpetual let- us- talk- to- you attitude and therefore allowing her to sleep. Finally. But now, when she had the opportunity, slumber evaded her. It was, put basically, extremely annoying.

She sat up, frustrated, running a hand through her messy blond hair. Her parents were in the other bedroom, with the door closed, so maybe Emma could 'sneak out' and go for a long stroll (and possibly acquire some strong alcohol) and then return, exhausted enough to fall asleep upon impact.

Images flickered in her mind, flashes of Henry, Snow, Charming, and Regina, and she wondered when her life had gotten so screwed up. Oh, right. When my ten- year- old kid dragged me from Boston to Maine to 'be the Saviour' and 'break the curse' which 'the Evil Queen cast'.

But if she was being honest to herself… while the events that had transpired that day were certainly confusing and disturbing, that wasn't what kept her awake. She'd slept through (much) worse; a fine example would be the first night she'd spent alone, in jail in Phoenix, at age eighteen and having just learned of Neal's betrayal and abandonment of her.

So much for 'finding Tallahassee together'.

But that was the point. The operative word in that statement had been Neal.

Gold and Belle. Alright, she had admitted it, albeit mentally. The way they're been making out when she'd burst into the back room- to be totally 100% completely truthful, it reminded her of how Neal used to kiss her, and how he would embrace her like that, like she was the only thing that would ever keep him from drowning.

Or maybe that was simply the way all teens supposedly tended to make out- with that unconquerable, unstoppably powerful (and somewhat lustful) blaze of unadulterated passion- and Gold and Belle were… simply having a heated reunion? Emma didn't recall seeing Belle before breaking the curse, so…

There was something else about the (very) odd pair that gave her the bright spark of déjà vu, but Emma couldn't touch on it. But it spurred her on anyways.

The 'sweet little bookworm' and the all- powerful- dark- mage- turned- pawnbroker in freaking love- who'd have thought it?

And the last little piece of déjà vu (and to think, she couldn't even remember why it was déjà vu!) was gnawing at her already stretched- to- bits mind… Neal Cassidy. It was like his spirit (or a piece of it, anyways) had somehow lodged in the kiss.

Because yeah, that was totally possible.

Emma's mental sarcasm was halfhearted at best, because as much as she might not like it, the truth of the matter was that it probably was possible. And that was undeniably wrong.

She couldn't sleep. Like, at all. In the back of her brain, she wondered exactly how pissed Belle might get if Emma knocked on the 'salmon' (it was pink!) door of Mr. Gold's house at- what was it, eleven at night? – AND was all like, "Sup? Ready for the little chitchat you requested?"

Yeah, no.

Plus the thought of any 'reunion nightcap' Rumple and Belle might or might not be having pulled Emma up short; there was no way in hell she'd ever be risking that unless, like, Henry was dying or something. She'd rather see her own parents 'do the deed' than GOLD.

Besides, should Emma ever happen to see that, she wouldn't get any sleep for… um, until she literally passed out? Which was bound to take at least three days of horrifying mental images before granting her peace in slumber.

She scrambled under the covers again, now desperate for sleep so she would have the energy to talk to Belle tomorrow. Maybe then the odd sense of deja vu would stop pestering her.

The morning after the little interruption, Rumplestiltskin woke with a start, furiously scanning the room and hoping to hell that he hadn't dreamt up the shattered curse and Belle's return from "death"- and there. There she was. Asleep, and glorious in slumber, wearing a dark gold satin nightdress, her auburn curls waving around the silk- covered pillow, her skin soft as the sand. Imaginably softer. He let out a battered exhale born of unadulterated relief. She was there, safe, and most importantly alive.

Belle awoke not moments later to find her beloved in dark silk pyjamas, eyes half- closed, staring at the ceiling. Almost without thinking, she rolled towards him (she had barely convinced him to let her sleep in his bed, let alone up against him) and buried her face in his lean chest. He let out a huff of surprise- and- when she looked up at him, she thought she saw lust in his dark amber- brown eyes. "Rumple," she said, her voice slightly croaky.

"Belle- you're awake," he breathed, and she caught his eyes scan her sleep- ridden form before returning to her own. "Are you alright, then?"

He was referring to the nightmare that had plagued her before she'd awakened half- shrieking in torment around midnight. He had held her as she'd fallen asleep again. Her sleep had been blessedly dreamless after that, and she had loved the feeling of being in his arms. "Yes, I'm fine." She yawned then, and stretched, wincing as her muscles groaned- a sign of underuse, which was understandable considering the amount of time she'd been in the asylum. "Can we get breakfast?"

"Of course," he answered immediately. "There's a place in town called Granny's. They serve breakfast."

"Can we go?"

"Indeed."

Less than half an hour later, Belle was dressed in a light blue blouse and a matching white skirt that came to just above her knees. Gold flats adorned her feet; her hair was half pulled back, half loose. She was extremely curious as to what this "Granny's" was.

Soon they were both ready- and so they departed with minimal haste, and Belle could see the torn relief and urge to relax a bit more in her beloved's amber gaze.

It was a fairly short walk to the diner.

At the diner, Emma was talking to her parents about her past. She had just gone over the third adoption home when Snow gasped out an "Emma, no" and she stopped.

But to her dismay, when she stopped, she looked up and saw who had just entered Granny's: everyone's least favourite pawnbroker. And the woman he loved (apparently). Belle.

"Emma!" Belle said across the diner. Emma felt the stares of several Storybrooke inhabitants bore into her back, and she scanned the small diner, a "shut up or get your ass kicked" look on her face. Nevertheless, she stood and crossed the room to meet the couple.

"How are you?" the cheerful brunette asked her straightaway, blue eyes bright and excited.

Emma decided on a simple response. "Tired," she said truthfully, and indeed there were dark circles etched beneath her eyes. "You?" It was around ten, she guessed.

"Pretty good," Belle said, a little wearily this time, and Emma didn't miss the look she shot at Mr. Gold. But still- the young blue- eyed bookworm didn't look like she was going through PTSD or the afterglows of "reunion sex"- so maybe she was simply worn out. For real.

The silence that filled Granny's was decidedly a most awkward one, Emma thought.

"So do you actually like reading all that much?" she asked Belle, mostly to just speak.

Belle's face lit up, clear and light like summer breezes and oceans. "Yes, of course! How did you know?"

"For one thing," Emma replied, pointing, "the book in your bag. For another thing, the fact that reading is a key trait of Beauty's personality in Beauty and the Beast."

An inquisitive look sparked in Belle's eyes. "Rumple, you really must show me what this thing is. And what a movie is," she added, smiling at Emma, who raised her eyebrows at Rumplestiltskin as if to say have fun with that.

"Very well, sweetheart," he said into her ear. But Emma, who grimaced immediately, had overheard. Well! It was kind of awkward hearing Mr. Gold use endearments for a woman who was surely (at least) twenty years his junior, so excuse her!

"So are you up for that talk today?" Belle asked Emma enthusiastically, her energy not dimmed by the (somewhat) early hour whatsoever.

Emma shrugged. "Yeah, alright. Where…?" She trailed off, feeling rather ineffectual and helpless- how the hell would Belle know where they could meet and talk? Granny's was too crowded, and aside from the aforementioned diner and Gold's house, where else had she been- excluding the asylum itself, which clearly was a no brainer?

"My house," Gold interrupted from his seat he'd taken beside Belle.

"You're included in this chat?" Emma couldn't help but say, snarky like a poked badger. She shot a sceptical look at Belle, who didn't seem to notice.

"Alright- no. Deal- Rumple, it can be in your house and you can listen, but I don't want you interrupting or anything of the sort," Belle compromised with glowing blue- iolite orbs that Emma could practically see boring into Rumplestiltskin's.

And she did indeed watch Gold consider the matter. It was quite interesting to observe his eyebrows raise, his eyes squint, and his mouth tighten before he finally said to Belle, "Fine. I will not interrupt your planned speech."

"Deal," Belle repeated, glancing at Emma, who nodded her acquiescence.

Moments later, Mr. Gold and Belle were finished with their syrup- glazed waffles and fruit, and as Ruby took their plates away, they stood. Belle shook Emma's hand, grinning softly with rose- pink lips."Thank you, Emma," she said gratefully. "I'll see you around… three this afternoon?"

Emma nodded at her, smiling in response. "Sure. See you then, Belle."

And as the couple left the diner, Emma could've swore she saw Gold turn his head and nod twice at her, blatant appreciation in his dark eyes. She inclined her head as he left. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh the horror that is this TINY freaking chapter! I'm so sorry, I am pretty sure I promised to have the actual DISCUSSION between Emma and Belle (and now Rumple, tee hee) in this chap, but I promised myself to try and work on the chapters for my other story for the cover bunnies contest, and I have a lot of inspiration for that one at the moment so- well, we ended up with a chapter two that totalled less than 2,000 words. All time low for me. :( I SWEAR I will have chapter three out by either tomorrow or Tuesday (hopefully tomorrow)! Thanks for sticking with me, and please REVIEW and let me know what you thought of this itsy- bitsy little thing FFN deems a chapter two!


	3. The Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very unimaginative chapter title, I know. Yep, didn't have this out until today (sorry) but I've been working on Chapter Two of True Love: It's Forever (nearly finished) and kind of neglected to even start this until, like, 11pm (Tuesday). :( Enjoy!

It was three o'clock in the afternoon. Belle looked at the large mantel clock in Rumple's living room, astonished that the time had passed so quickly since they'd arrived home from Granny's. In that time, in preparation for Emma's arrival, Belle had cleaned the house and de- cluttered all the rooms, eaten lunch with her True Love, and finished a book her new friend Ruby had recommended called Fifty Shades of Grey. It was… meant to be erotic, she knew, but it was nothing compared to some of the old velvet- bound novels she'd discovered in the library Rumple had built for her in the Dark Castle. Still, it had been a good read. She reminded herself to thank Ruby.

"Is Miss Swan here?" Rumple called to her from the balcony, clad in the same impeccable dark suit he'd worn to Granny's Diner.

She shook her head- he could see her from up there, she thought- and said, "No, she isn't. But she'll come."

"I have no doubt she will."

True to her word, Emma appeared not five minutes later, breathing fast, her cell phone in hand. "Sorry," she gasped. "Henry wanted to come. I had to make a run for it while he was in the bathroom."

Belle smiled welcomingly. "He could've come," she said, agreeably, "I wouldn't have minded."

"Speak for yourself," she heard Rumple mutter behind her, low enough that only she would hear. She shot him a chastising look and let Emma into the house.

Emma had to admit, she was slightly awed by the immaculate furnishing and decor in Mr. Gold's pink (pink!) Victorian. Belle had welcomed her in easily, Mr. Gold himself looming behind her like a shadow. She scanned the place quickly, Belle directing her to a living room, where she hesitantly sank down onto a red leather couch.

"I…" Emma was at a loss for words. Which usually didn't happen to her. People simply never had that effect on her. Apparently Belle and Mr. Gold- combined to conquer- did.

Belle sat on the white sofa opposite her, and after a moment Mr. Gold joined her, resting his gold- handled cane on the edge.

Considering her words, Emma spoke slowly. "Um… so… what's your story?"

Belle fidgeted on the couch, and looked at Gold before saying, "I was born to King Maurice and Queen Beatrice, the rulers of the kingdom of Avonlea." She blinked. "When I was about twelve, my mother was killed in an assassination meant for me. She… died to protect me." The words, softly spoken, were full of lifetimes of pain, and Emma felt a rush of sympathy. "My father turned colder- less the benevolent King and more the manipulator," she clarified, with another look at Gold, who smiled at her. Smiled.

"Belle, you don't have to-" Gold began, hastily.

Belle exhaled lightly, effectively cutting him off. "Rumple, please." She brushed a lock of hair away from her aquamarine eyes. "My father signed a betrothal contract with Sir Leroex- the father of Sir Gaston, a boisterous knight in my father's army- and would have me be wed at twenty… which was at the time very late. My mother married my father at fifteen, I think. But then…" She sighed. "The ogres came, and brought havoc with them. They plagued our lands for nearly four years before we became desperate enough to call on the one being who could rid them from our land forever."

Emma could connect the puzzle pieces now. "He summoned Gold," she surmised, looking at the pawnbroker more than Belle herself.

He inclined his head in silence.

"Well, actually, it was my idea to summon the Dark One," Belle admitted. "As you may have heard, Rumplestiltskin never makes a deal without a price. And in this case… his price was me."

Emma had in fact heard of his nefarious reputation for dealmaking from her fairytale- obsessed son, but she had not expected a demand so exorbitant. "You dealt for a human?" she said to Gold incredulously, frowning as though upon murder.

He laughed. And so did she. Which was just a tad bit strange. "Indeed I did." At her look of disgust, he added, "Oh. Don't you worry your little blond head, Ms. Swan, it was purely for cleaning purposes. My Belle was the caretaker…" And here his face slipped into a rather devious grin. "Of my rather large… estate."

Emma glanced at Belle, who nodded as if to say yeah, I know, it's ridiculous, but it's true.

"So what happened?" she asked the brunette, confused still.

"I fell in love with him," Belle admitted, as freely as though she was speaking of the weather forecast. "And… we suffered for it."

The sheriff raised her eyebrows.

"I…" Belle blushed a bit, which made Emma wonder, but she continued on anyway. "I kissed him," she said quietly, "because Regina said it would break his curse. And it nearly did. But…"

"But I acted truly like the selfish bastard you think of me as," Gold interjected calmly, "and I threw the little Beauty in the dungeon. And then I cast her out of my castle and out of my life. And…" His voice trembled with anger. "Your Evil Queen captured her, and took her to her own Winter Palace, to hold her hostage without my knowledge in the North Tower so she could- so she could torture her. Torture my Belle for her own sick amusement." He was shaking, Emma saw, and she was somewhat frightened; this was the most display of emotion she had ever seen from Gold. "When the Dark Curse was cast, she had the dark nerve to keep Belle in the asylum beneath the basement, for twenty- eight years. And all the while… I thought she was dead. Because that was what Regina-" he nearly spat her name "-led me to believe."

Belle's eyes were watery blue now, like a glass of coloured water. She leaned against Gold.

"What did she tell you?" Emma wondered, almost afraid to ask.

Gold- or, rather, Rumplestiltskin- snarled. "She came to my Dark Castle," he growled, "and said 'her father shunned her. Cut her off. Shut her out'… at which point, I asked if she… needed a home."

Belle's face shone with sadness as she looked at the pawnbroker, and Emma felt it. She felt sorry for them.

Gold wasn't finished, and the muscles of his jaw clenched as he went on. "The Evil Queen said to me, 'he was cruel to her. He- he- locked her in a tower'." His hands clenched where they sat fisted together on his lap, and Belle leaned further against him. He looked at her then, like she was the only thing that would keep his heart from shattering, and Emma then could not fathom how they had survived. Together. It made her think of Neal again.

When Gold concluded, his tone was like a tornado, dropping and whirling in cold, unforgiving fury. "'And sent in clerics to… cleanse her soul… with scourges and flaying'," he quoted Regina's words, and Emma now more than ever understood why he hated her so much. "She told me," he whispered, apparently now beyond repeating the Evil Queen's taunts to him, "that she had committed suicide. Jumped off the tower. Died," he spat.

Emma realized something that had been surely staring her in the face this entire conversation. "Oh my God," she said. "That's why, on Valentine's Day, when you…"

Rumplestiltskin nodded, grimly but acceptedly. "Why I beat Moe French nearly to death with a cane, yes."

Belle showed next to no reaction to this; Emma assumed even though the fault in her imprisonment had not been her father's so much as the Evil Queen's, King Maurice had still done a grievous wrongdoing back in their land, and so Gold had told his True Love of the caning incident.

"And why you sent that… thing after Regina."

"The Wraith. Yes."

Emma could not help but understand now, and she regretted being so harsh before. Even though she'd never say it aloud.

"What about you, Emma?" Belle inquired. "Why don't you want to go back to the Enchanted Forest with your family?"

Emma flinched. But she supposed it was only fair for her to answer Belle's queries after she had shared her and Gold's dark, twisted version of Beauty and the Beast. "I… don't really know. I just don't think it's my life. It's too much- all of it. I can barely take the fact that Rumplestiltskin is the Beast. How would I take a world full of all this screwed-ness?"

She didn't dare look at the two sitting opposite her.

"Emma," Gold said, his voice warmer than she'd ever heard it, "you're not honestly concerned about fitting in there?"

She heard more than saw Belle slap him on the arm; without meaning to, she grinned. And then looked sheepish. "…Maybe."

"Well, you shouldn't be!" Belle burst out, before Gold could throw in a snappish retort. "I never fit into society, and I ended up with True Love! Emma, please. You've changed the lives of everyone here. It would be so terribly drab without you there.Please think about coming with us!"

There was something that flashed on Gold's face that looked to Emma like a secret kept, but (now) she knew better than to pry. She stood up, noting that over half an hour had passed- they'd talked for that long? - and made to leave. "Thank you, Belle," she said sincerely, and grudgingly she added, "You too, Gold. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome!" Belle called brightly, and as she left, she caught Gold's smile.

Emma entered her mother's apartment with a grin on her face. "Hey, kid!" she exclaimed, upon seeing Henry, who sat on the counter with the Once Upon a Time book as usual. "Want some ice cream?"

Her son's face lightened considerably. "Yeah, sure!"

Maybe starting over in the Enchanted Forest with all her friends and family would be a good fresh beginning, Emma thought with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: UUUUUGGHHH my pitiful little short chappie. *sad face*. I was half- asleep when I wrote this. Sorry if it sucks. It probably does. Just wanted to get it out in time (although technically, it's Wednesday, so- sorry! :( I kept writing bits of True Love: It's Forever into this and had to go back and change it, so apologies in advance for any typos and such.
> 
> I am unfortunately quite busy Wednesday and Thursday, so hopefully chapter four will be out Saturday- not quite sure. Next chapter: Emma has a proper talk with her parents about the EF, Ruby and Belle chat over iced teas, and Rumple works on finding Baelfire. Not certain whether next chapter or chapter five will be the last one.
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks ever so much to all who reviewed, favourited, or followed! Love you all, dearies, and please share your opinions, whether they are good or bad, on this latest chapter!


	4. Love is Enough

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It would do me some good to stop promising new chapters on certain days. *Insert foot in mouth*.
> 
> I don't think Emma would actually act like this, ever, but I was rewatching a couple episodes set after the curse break, and I think Emma was kind of thinking some of this stuff in them, although she didn't voice the thoughts. Also, Rumplestiltskin's task (mentioned in last chapter's A/N) might not be as hard as he thinks…
> 
> This is the last chapter of this fic, mostly because I am totally freaking out about the cover bunnies stories I need to work on and don't have time to write this as well. Thanks for sticking with me, dearies.
> 
> Also, this chapter is pretty much unedited, so I apologize ahead of time for grammatical or punctuation- related screwups, etc. Enjoy:)

"Emma, where've you been?" David demanded upon her reentrance into the apartment, Henry scurrying past them up to his room to play video games.

"With Belle and Gold," she said reluctantly, flopping down onto the couch.

" _What_?" her father nearly yelled. " _Why_?"

She barely stopped herself from bashing her head into the table. "To hear some stories." David looked very displeased. "Really. Belle told me about her life in- well, fairytale land- and that was pretty much… it. And then I came here, and you weren't here, actually, so I took Henry for ice cream. Okay?"

Honestly, Emma didn't mean to let out her frustration on David, but this whole life thing was infuriating her: the pressure to go back, the pressure to be a good mother, the pressure to act like she'd been their freaking daughter their whole lives and automatically loved them-

It had been hard enough with Henry. But she had grown to love him quickly, because he was of her blood and heart, and he was a good kid who just wanted his mother. David Nolan she had seen do terrible things, amongst them being the events that had broken Mary Margaret Blanchard's pure little heart, betrayed a good woman who expected her husband to love and be faithful to her, and somehow manage to shatter two people who loved him at once. All in all, he had been an asshole. And although she had been assured many times that David Nolan was very much  _not_  Prince Charming, she had still seen the events, lived them through her own eyes. It increased the stress and difficulty of coping with all of it; no one wanted to see their father take their mother's heart and, figuratively, crush it into a billion pieces.

She had to try, though.

For Henry.

* * *

Two days later, she came out of her room to find Mary Margaret and David standing in front of her, holding hands. "Emma, we need to talk."

She was taken aback. "Uh-"

"You found out the story of Gold's True Love, a woman you don't even know, before you heard ours. That- it hurts," Mary Margaret finished, looking all at once ecstatic and terrified and heartbroken.  _Is she always this melodramatic?_

Emma's words were out of her mouth before she could pull them back and bury them in the more shadowy recesses of her heart. "Well, it hurt to be abandoned on the side of a road in Maine and orphaned for twenty- eight years, but I dealt with it. I already  _know_  your story. My _son_  told me. I don't  _want_ to talk about fairytale land! If I go back, it'll be for  _Henry_."

Mary Margaret- she refused to call her her mother- had tears welling up in her eyes before David could wrap a comforting arm around her. "What?" she said.

"Leave me  _alone_." She made for the door only to have it open, so fast she darted back to avoid it smacking into her face.

Who she saw was also the one who had shattered  _her_  heart. But everything broken was reparable.

" _Neal_?"

He was grinning, the bastard. Outrageously so. His face was alight, his hair nearly covering his eyes, his clothing simple but somewhat expensive, and it all  _infuriated_ her. "Emma."

She realized, with a jolt of fear, that her son was upstairs and likely could hear everything they were saying. She lowered her voice. "Get _out_ ," she hissed at him, two seconds away from shoving him out the door herself.

"Emma, let me talk to you at least- I'm sorry-" he began.

She snapped. " _No,_ you do not get to say you're SORRY! Do you KNOW how it FEELS to be ABANDONED AGAIN?! I am not dealing with your bullshit, Neal! I don't want to see you here again! Get OUT!"

His answer was not at all what she had expected. "That isn't my name, Em," he told her quietly. "Not Neal. Baelfire."

"You're Baelfire?" Henry said from behind Emma, and she leaped about ten feet into the air.

"HENRY! What the hell, kid?" she demanded, trying and failing to cover up her terror. "Go back upstairs!"

Her son ignored her completely. "You're Mr. Gold's son," he said calmly, as if telling a young child the answer to one plus one.

Emma buried her head in her hands. "Oh God," she whispered, mentally noting that she sounded like Mary Margaret.

Mary Margaret and David. Standing mere feet away. Observing this whole real- life nightmare.

"Who's Mr. Gold?" Neal asked obliviously.

_Crap_. Rumplestiltskin's son… was Henry's father… which meant Rumplestiltskin was Henry's  _grandfather_.

"Don't you know?" replied Henry with a grin, although he couldn't know who Neal really was. And if Emma had any say in it, he never would, but she suspected that was all about to change. "Rumplestiltskin!"

* * *

Belle walked into Granny's bright and early that morning- sans her True Love, who was working on a potion to find Baelfire after Charming had told them of the fate of the dwarf who had crossed the line.

She recognized the red- clad waitress- Ruby- from Rumple's shop. "Hey," she said slowly, still cautious around the people of Storybrooke, whose reactions had been mostly mixed.

"Hey, Belle," Ruby said cheerfully. "How are you?"

"Good," she answered with a smile. "Do you serve tea here?"

The werewolf-turned-waitress raised her eyebrows but didn't comment. "Iced tea?" she suggested, and Belle nodded, accepting the glass as she passed it to her.

"Thanks."

Ruby inclined her head. "So how's Gold?" she inquired curiously.

Belle shrugged. "Busy, I guess," she responded. "He's making something to find his son." She didn't really know if she was supposed to be disclosing that fact, but she had a feeling she could trust Ruby.

"He has a  _son_?"

Belle flushed. "Yes. Um- they are… estranged."

Ruby nodded in understanding.

* * *

Neal's mouth opened and closed silently, gawking at Henry. He looked at Emma. "Is he mine?" he asked.

She wanted to scream, to throw something, to hide, to run and plead and fight and destroy. "Neal- Henry, go back upstairs. Now," she said, ushering him away. Her son stayed where he was, his feet firmly planted on the hardwood floor.

"Emma,  _is he mine_?" Neal reiterated.

She whirled around, glaring furiously. "You do not get to ask that, Neal. YOU DO NOT GET TO ASK THAT QUESTION. Henry- go."

Henry was heading toward the stairs. Now on the stairs. And Neal just _had_  to shout those words, those unforgettable and destroying words. "Kid, how old are you?"

_Shit._

Henry didn't answer. " _How old are you_?" Neal yelled, as if he hadn't heard the first time.

" _Eleven!_ " her son-  _her son_ , not Neal's, hell he was more Regina's than Neal's - finally spat. "Now  _what_  is everyone talking about?"

She felt sick, sick satisfaction in watching Neal falter, his eternally cocky look falling away from those eyes-

T-hose curling melted-chocolate like eyes, that she suddenly saw the resemblance in- Gold had those eyes, no, no, no, this was not-

"Emma, is this my son?"

She lost the raging war against her urge to scream, and scream until her throat bled out and she was empty of everything she'd locked up for over ten years. "YES, NEAL! But you don't get to stay because you _left me_  in a  _jail cell_  and I hate you and you betrayed me and you don't deserve to be a father any more than Gold in fact he deserves it more- at least he didn't condemn Belle to jail when she was freaking pregnant- GET OUT!"

"My dad is dead," Henry said, dumbfounded. "He was a fireman. He died saving a family. He's  _dead_." There was a strange blankness in his tone that she would never be able to associate with Henry; it was like he was watching someone die as he looked at Emma.

"Henry," Emma whispered brokenly.

"And Mom you're wrong the Evil Queen locked her up for like thirty years," her son said, ignoring her, sounding strangled.

"I'm sorry, Emma, August said I had to for the sake of the curse breaking-"

"YOU SENT ME TO PRISON WHILE I WAS  _PREGNANT_  BECAUSE _PINOCCHIO_  TOLD YOU TO?!" Emma shrieked. Oh no, August had known her before and still done all that bullshit nonsense to her when he'd come to Storybrooke even when he had caused her to be imprisoned, to have her child in jail- oh God no.

"You lied to me!" Henry interjected, betrayal in his eyes. "You told me my dad was dead!"

She didn't know what to say to that. "Henry, I'm sorry-"

"Wait, you're Gold's son?" David said, seeming to just grasp what had already been clarified. She felt a burst of anger at his interruption. "You weren't part of the curse?"

"I'm assuming I was the reason for the curse. That's what my dad said."

Inconsiderate bastard. "What, and he didn't think to call?" she demanded. Without further discussion, she threw open the front door and strode past Neal, out and headed to Gold's shop, hoping he and Belle weren't… er, no more thoughts needed on the topic, thank you.

* * *

Belle had headed back to Rumplestiltskin's shop after speaking with Ruby for a while, and watched him spin gold for a potion to try and locate Baelfire. She had most definitely not expected Emma to storm in, screaming something about someone called Neal and some more about Henry and Regina and her parents. From the look on Rumple's face, he had never seen the Saviour so uncontrolled.

"Pardon, Miss Swan?" Rumplestiltskin said to the furious Sheriff.

" _Your son_!" she shouted.

Belle's eyes widened, shockingly so. She couldn't judge how Rumple was feeling based on the impassive guard he had put up, but she knew in her heart that it hit him hard.

"Your son is Henry's-" she said a very unladylike word, one Belle had only ever heard from her father's knights or Rumple in an extreme fit of pique "-father!"

Belle dropped the books she'd been holding, and then scrambled to pick them up. Her Rumple was stock- still, frozen in absolute surprise and what looked like terror. Neither of them spoke.

"And he's come to my door knocking and now he expects me to let him be with Henry and please, I don't know what to do and my parents with their perfect love lives will never understand, you would!" She was seemingly beyond hysterical, eyes wild and frantic.

"Bae is here?" Rumplestiltskin finally said. He looked almost detached from the world, unable to accept that his son was here and no longer entire realms away from him, and all Belle wanted to do was wrap her arms around him and never, ever let go.

"Your son's here?" Belle repeated, mostly for something to say.

Emma nodded, practically vibrating.

Rumple smiled, the widest, purest smile she'd seen on his face in all the time she had known him, and then they were in the Charming's apartment again, and Emma was coughing out purple smoke.

Vaguely, Belle wondered where her books had gone as she took in the features of the face she felt like she already knew. Brown eyes identical to her Rumplestiltskin's, messy brown hair, a half-smile. She committed the moment to memory as she examined the face of her True Love, who looked as if he might fall over, and discreetly slipped her arm into his.

" _Bae_ ," whispered Rumple, desperately, his eyes pleading for forgiveness.

Baelfire (/Neal?)'s head shot up; he gaped at his father, unbelieving. "-Papa?" he stuttered out.

There were gasps that Belle half- registered: Snow's and Charming's, Henry's, and Emma's barely- there exhale. All she really could know was her Rumple gently but quickly pulling his arm free and moving to embracing his boy, tears in both of their eyes, his murmurs a perpetual apology. "Bae, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I never wanted to leave you. Please forgive me, I'm so sorry."

It felt like a thorn was torn away from her heart when Bae wholeheartedly threw his arms around his father and hugged him, whispering forgiveness. Belle remembered to breathe again, so utterly relieved, and then Rumplestiltskin seemed to recall her presence two feet away from him, and extended an arm to wrap around her waist and pull her in. She clung to him, but wrapped a cautious arm around Baelfire's shoulders.

"Bae, this is Belle," Rumple nearly whispered.

Baelfire looked at her then, smiling and friendly. "Hi, Belle. Uh-"

And he was going to ask what she was to his father, of course. Thankfully, Henry chimed in, surprisingly cheerful. "They're True Love."

Baelfire's eyes shot wide open, and Belle glanced at Rumple nervously. "When-"

"Perhaps a year before the curse," Rumple said thoughtfully. "Son-"

"It's good to meet you, Belle," interjected Baelfire, facial expression warm.

She relaxed a bit, and in doing so was free to notice Emma, standing and glaring rather fiercely at the whole scene. Belle sighed quietly, debating, and then freed herself from the embrace and went over to throw her arms around Emma.

The Saviour froze, shocked, before awkwardly and tentatively embracing her in return. "I know how you feel," Belle muttered, feeling as though it needed to be said.

"Sorry." Emma fidgeted. "It's just an assault on the brain, ya know, finding out that Gold is Henry's grandfather and stuff."

"I know," Belle was quick to assure her. "Thank you."

The blonde sheriff raised her eyebrows. "For what?"

"Breaking the curse. I need Rumple in my life, and he needs his son. And Emma, I think this will end well for you." Belle was confident in her words. She knew heartbreak well, and had seen it in the Saviour's green eyes as well as in the face of Rumple's son, and was sure they would reunite at some point.

"How can you tell?"

Belle smiled. "I have… a sense about people." It had been true enough back in the Dark Castle.

"Well, thank you," Emma said softly. Belle grinned at her again and released her, leaving her to the tight embrace of Snow and Charming and Henry all at once, and returning to Rumple and Bae.

This was the mending of the shattered fragments that her heart had broken into. This was her-  _their_ \- happy ending. She would not let it slip away.

Belle loved Rumplestiltskin, and he loved her, and it was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End!
> 
> I am very sorry about this chapter. It was too short for my liking and didn't end with much, but I am in an exhaustion- induced stupor and typing half-asleep, so apologies.
> 
> This is the end to this story, and I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, favourited, or followed it. It means so much to me and I really appreciate the commentary.
> 
> AquaJasmine23

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it:) I'd be glad to hear your opinion! Always up for constructive criticism, so please REVIEW! If you'd like me to continue, I may post a second chapter with Emma and Belle's (and Rumple?) little… chat.


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